More than just fundraising for the Whitecourt REVZ Volleyball Club

By Corrine Gadke

Groups of the REVZ Volleyball Club were out and about in Whitecourt’s residential areas going door to door on February 8 collecting bottles for its annual Bottle Drive Fundraiser. You may have met some of the area youth aged 10 to 18 knocking on your door between 1 and 3 p.m. asking for bottle donations. The members were also selling tickets for the 50/50 draw.

The REVZ Volleyball Club is raising funds to help cover the costs for uniforms, gear, fees, and travel for three premier tours, Provincials, and Nationals. Some of these events have the group traveling across Alberta to places such as Edmonton and Calgary with the possibility of going as far as Abbotsford, BC to compete with teams from across Canada.

The Volleyball Club, consisting of 40 to 60 participants, divided Whitecourt into 10 sections, assigning smaller groups of the team to each section. Trucks and trailers were stationed at the Walmart parking lot as a central drop off for all bottle donations collected by team members and volunteers.

Organizer Joe Spivak said, “The community support has been exceptional. We do not want to hinder the local Community Lunchbox Program, so we are going door to door. This is a great learning experience for our team members. We are teaching our youth hard work and people skills in our community. We are not only teaching them on the court but to continue as a team off the court. This is the club’s main fundraiser. We have the perfect weather for it. Hoping to take advantage of the past Super Bowl celebrations, our goal is to raise $2,500. We won’t know the total amount raised for a couple of days but with today’s turnout we are very confident that we will reach that goal.”